For my classroom, I offer this current events assignment as an extra credit option. I have a "News of the Day" board in the front of my classroom split into four different sections (World, Nation, State, Local). Students will find a newspaper, online, or magazine article that relates in some way to social studies. They will have to summarize, highlight, connect to content, and evaluate the article.
I offer it as extra credit, but you could use this as an assignment for almost any grade level.